Page 6 - Excerpts from the diary

into a tent and it was filled up in hibernation.
It is only one of examples, and similar thousands.
How to me to order him? A mortar with mines, he speaks, it is necessary to throw. A key for a mortar, he speaks,
is not necessary and, scoffing over me, says that it will throw him. Yes well to hell and I do not want to write him
about him, but also heavy not to write. The lieutenant at his presence says that I am strict with him that with him
should be spoken more softly and to obey him because he is more senior.

Yesterday wrote the letter to mother, to Yessentuki, Olya, the aunt Ania and to «Stalin Soldier» newspaper
editorial office where sent the poem «Hello, Places Lovely to Heart».
Firefight was stronger yesterday. Poor Haustov nearly died when in the evening of drop near him splinters nearby
the exploded mines (I went for dinner). I will awake him now. Will be enough for him to sleep!
And the nature here only that to write verses on her. The head in fog is a pity there is a wish to sleep, I die.
Occasionally somewhere the shell will whistle and again it is silent, only the cuckoo shouts carefree at all forest:
to a kuk, a kuk, mosquitoes annoyingly hoot and funny various birds chirp, trying to rehash the dispersed
nightingale, but it is vain. Cheerful nice birdie. He is not silent minutes.
Low over the head the plane flies. Apparently, reconnaissance plane. Whose? It is difficult to define on both
sides of it do not fire. Everything abated. It departed. Only wind rustles with foliage of trees, echoing playful
birds forest.
I all swelled up from stings of the small midges and disgustingly ugly and importunate mosquitoes getting even
under a shirt to bite only.

07.19.1942

If it is correct today VΙΙ.19. In the settlement to which during yesterday's record on the way there were 13
kilometers I am in it now.
Night we spent the night already here. Arrived late, day was cloudy, and we relied on at once to sleep. Here still
some public enterprises work though the cattle, the collective farm and state farm property and also bank are
evacuated. The drugstore and shop of school supplies work. Military here weight. Before us there arrived the
regiment here and was placed on all back streets. We did not have the place in the center of the settlement and it
was necessary to move through the small river again to the Western outskirts of the village where we already
were.
At night, it started to rain. I felt in the sleep his large, chilling drops which were densely covering everything
around. Instinctively shrank into a ball, sprained under himself a gas mask, having covered with an overcoat, but
it, of course, did not help. I got wet to a thread. The only thing that remained dry is a gas mask bag with
notebooks and the top part of a trunk with side pockets where notebooks are stored, photographs and
documents these places I most protected.
In air continuous rumble of planes. It is unclear, what is expected by ours? Whether not new landing and other
difficulties ahead? They want, you see to squeeze out more of these areas of necessary products. Honey was got
in apiaries. It is a lot of to honey. Now change it for bread. Wheat was take here in barns bags, changed with
peasants for bread, flour and so forth. Want to remain here to gather more bread because, according to them,
beyond Don you will not get change much.
The second lieutenant just arrogant boy, cunning, though near on mind, but practical. There lives only for itself,
as well as all my environment. He learned it, probably, in school. Strongly he comes under influence of fighters
and by any advice it is ready to do everything rather to force to do me and others, less skilled in life and,
therefore, less necessary for the company, useful and authoritative fighters. But such it is not enough time, two
also miscalculated.
Mines threw out they from the vehicle still when ahead of us there was a landing of the German sub machine
gunners (by words according to the junior lieutenant who joined us, the former schoolmate of our platoon
commander) broken our and his, the 27 and 28 battalions. I did not know about it. At that time I would not allow